PBSC January - Anything Goes (Optional 'Something New')

It's the first Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for a new Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'
or
'Something New'
(New Year, New Baby, New Home, New Job, New Stash...)

As usual, we are sponsored by the awesome 1-2-3 Stitch:

Prize - a $20 voucher!

I went with 'New Year', and my project for this challenge is a 2020 Penny Black calendar. I buy a few of the blank 'Create a Calendars' from Paper Mill Direct to decorate and give as Christmas presents each year, and this is the one I made for my Mum. They still have some available here (50% off with the code 202050) if you fancy making yourself one. I used a variety of Penny Black stamps and papers from lots of different manufacturers...far too many to list, but I did manage to use up lots of snippets! Here's a look at each of the months:

I'm also entering this calendar into the following challenges:

• Always Fun - New Year 2020
• Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper - Anything Goes
• Creative Knockouts - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Something New (New Year)

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

ABC Christmas Challenge - A & B are for?

Happy New Year!

Over at the ABC Christmas Challenge, we're starting our eleventh (!) trip through the alphabet...I'm the host, and the themes for this month are:

'A is for Anything Christmas Goes'

and

'B is for Bingo'

(Pick three elements in a row, column or diagonal)

I have a card for each of the two themes...and used new (to me) stamps on both. My 'A is for Anything Christmas Goes' card features a huge Christmas tree stamp by Indigo Blu called 'Baroque Christmas Tree'. I had an attempt at 'shadow stamping', and started by stamping it on to kraft card using Versafine 'Smoky Gray' ink, then moved the card along slightly and stamped it again using Versamark Ink, and heat embossed it using white. I matted it on to a layer of white card, distressed the edges a little, and then on to a kraft card blank adding a few adhesive pearls in the corners.

My 'B is for Bingo' card uses stamps from a set that I think came free with a magazine at some point...I went for the central column on the bingo board (Coloured Image - Christmas Sentiment - CAS), colouring the tree using watercolour pencils...adding some sparkle to the baubles and bows using liquid pixiedust. The sentiment came in the same stamp set, and I added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen.

I'm also entering these cards into the following challenges:

• Allsorts - Anything Goes
• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Moo Mania - Triangles (Just the first card)

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

Favourite Five Cards 2019

Today, I'm sharing my favourite (non-Christmas) cards of the year...I've included links back to the original blog posts, so please click through for the full info on any of the projects.

Buzz in the Air

This card was made for the 'Thank You Di' blog hop that Darnell organised...and I tried to use as many snippets as possible.

Cheers

Despite my love for patterned papers, I made quite a lot of CAS cards without any, inclusing this one featuring some Penny Black critters.

Burst into Bloom

Another CAS card featuring another favourite of the year...colouring on kraft card.

Big Gold Butterfly

I've also loved metallic embossing and watercolouring this year...

Sketched Flowers

This card features probably my favourite stamp of the year...and another 'new to me' technique...colouring on coloured card.

Before I go, I'd like to wish all of my lovely blog visitors a very Happy and Crafty New Year! See you in 2020!

Cheerful Critters

I have a birthday card to share today...featuring some critters from the 'Cheerful Critters' set by Penny Black, and lots of snippets of paper from the 'Prince Charming' pad by Recollections/Michaels. I stamped the image on to watercolour paper, thn coloured it using watercolour pencils. I distressed all of the edges a little, then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen. The sentiment is from a set by Lili of the Valley.

Challenges for this card:

• Creative Knockouts - Celebrations
• Cute Card Thursday - Anything Goes
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Party Time
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Party Time

My Favourite Five Christmas Cards

As has become traditional, I'm sharing my favourite five Christmas cards of the year this evening...I made 96 this year, so I had quite a few to choose from! For additional information on any of the cards, click on the image to go to the original post.

The first one is from January, and features a cute Penny Black snowman...I love the soft pastel colours on this one.

My second card was an experiment in heat embossing using a couple of different powders using a beautiful Indigo Blu image that I picked up in the bargain bin.

My next card features a similar layout to the first, but this time a cute Lili of the Valley image and stamped snow.

I made rather a lot of CAS cards this year (cheap to post!), and these were among the simplest to make...a technique I will definitely be revisiting next year!

My final card is also my most recent one...and features lots of my favourite things...a Penny Black image, pretty papers, faux stitching...

One more thing before I go...I always share a photo of my Christmas cake on Christmas Eve too...so here it is:

Have a lovely Christmas everyone!

Cheering Critters

I have a birthday card to share today...featuring one of the stamps from the 'Cheering Critters' set by Penny Black. I stamped it on to watercolour paper, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. For the background I used papers from the K & Company 'Addison' pad...a recent charity shop find, completely unused! I distressed the edges a little, then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen. The sentiment stamp is from a set by Lili of the Valley.

Challenges for this card:

• Creative Knockouts - Anything Goes
• Lil Patch of Crafty Friends - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Party Time
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Party Time
• Stamps + Fun = Creativity - Anything Goes

PBSC December - Anything Goes (Optional 'Sparkle & Shine')...More Inspiration!

It's the third Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for some more inspiration for this month's Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'
or
'Sparkle & Shine'

As usual, we are sponsored by the awesome 1-2-3 Stitch:

Prize - a $20 voucher!

I'd been rifling through my Penny Black stamps for images for another couple of projects, and came across this swet Christmas image called 'Welcome Party' that I couldn't remember using this year (in fact a quick search on my blog shows that I last used it in May 2017!), so thought I'd ink t up for this challenge. I stamped it on to watercolour paper, then coloured it using watercolour pencils. I paired it with papers from the 'Silent Night' pad by First Edition...distressing all of the edges, and adding some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen. I matted a couple of layers on to some silver glitter card for some sparkle & shine, and added a sentiment from the 'Tattered Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• A Bit More Time to Craft - Anything Goes
• Cards Galore Encore - Anything Goes
• Corrosive - Anything Goes
• Crafters Cafe - Holidays or Something Beginning with C
• Creatalicious - Anything Goes
• Cute Card Thursday - Anything Goes
• Daring Cardmakers - Pretty Pastel Christmas
• Sparkles Forum - Glitter & Sparkle
• Stamping Sensations - Anything Goes
• Sweet Stampers - Anything Goes

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Xmas Crafts

I have a super simple one layer card to share today, featuring an older Penny Black stamp called 'Xmas Crafts'. I stamped it directly on to my card blank, then coloured it using watercolour pencils...I added some sparkle to the snowflake using a Wink of Stella pen, but I couldn't get it to show in a photo. The sentiment is from the 'Merriest Christmas' set by Hero Arts.

Challenges for this card:

• Aud Sentiments - Christmas or Winter Sentiment
• CAS on Friday - Christmas
• Creative Inspirations - Festive Fun
• Lil Red Wagon - Any Winter Holiday
• Penny's Paper Crafty - Anything Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Through the Craft Room Door - Anything Goes
• Use Your Stuff - Christmas Time

Little Glitter Boxes

I have a set of little Christmas gift boxes to share today...made using my We R Memory Keepers box board. They're the largest size the board can make (4 inch cubes), and each one is made from a sheet of 12x12 glitter paper, although it's so thick it's more like a card (from the 'Glitter' pad by Craft Sensations). Not Christmas patterned, but the sparkle makes them feel a bit festive.

I made some co-ordinating tags, cutting the tag shapes from silver glitter card using an old Sizzix die, adding a simple tree shape (cut from snippets of the Craft Sensations 'Glitter' pad, using a die from the Hero Arts/Sizzix 'Reindeer' set). I tied them up using really sparkly silver ribbon.

Challenges for these boxes:

• C.R.A.F.T. - Christmas Present
• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Crafty Hazelnut's Patterned Paper - Anything Goes
• Cut It Up - Christmas
• Happy Little Stampers (Dies) - Anything Goes
• Inkspirational - No Stamping

Xmouse Ornament

I have another Christmas card to share today...this one features an old Penny Black mage called 'Xmouse Ornament'...which I stamped on to watercolour paper, coloured using watercolour pencils, before carefully it cutting out. I embossed a snippet of blue glitter card using a Cuttlebug 'Snowflakes embossing folder, matted it on to some navy card, then added the mouse on top using 3D foam pads. I gave his little snowflake a coating of Stickles, and added a Lili of the Valley stamped sentiment.

It's so tricky to get the embossing to show on a photo as it's s sparkly, but here's another view:

Challenges for this card:

• Alphabet Challenge - S is for Snow
• Always Fun - Snowflakes
• Christmas at Sweet Stampin' - Critters
• Crafty Cardmakers - Christmas
• Crafty Catz - Anything Goes (Optional Blue Christmas)
• Cutie Pie - Christmas Cuties
• Happy Little Stampers (Christmas) - Anything Christmas Goes
• Incy Wincy - Christmas Without Red or Green
• The Holly & the Ivy - Anything Christmas Goes
• The Sisterhood of Crafters - Anything Christmas

Hedgie Harmony

Today's card features three of the little hedgies from the 'Hedgie Harmony' set by Penny Black...stamped on to a snippet of watercolour paper, along with a few extra notes and a sentiment, and coloured using wtercolour pencils. I added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen, and layered it over a snippet of red card embossed with with my Crafts Too 'Music Notes' embossing folder.

Challenges for this card:

• Crafty Creations - Anything Goes
• Crafty Sentiments - Anything Goes
• Creative Moments - Anything Goes
• Gem of a Challenge - Anything Goes
• Moo Mania - Anything Goes
• Pixie's Snippets Playground - Use Snippets
• Through the Craft Room Door - Anything Goes

Tattered Christmas

I have another Christmas card to share today...this time featuring a few stamps from the 'Tattered Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Stampers Anonymous. I stamped them on to watercolour paper, coloured them using watercolour pencils, then added some faux stitching using my CutterBee Bug and a black gel pen, before matting the panel on to some red glitter card.

Challenges for this card:

• Allsorts - Snowmen and/or Snowflakes
• Crafty Hazelnut's Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Creative Knockouts - Christmas Delight
• Jingle Belles - Anything Christmas
• My Time to Craft - Christmas Scene
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Traditional Christmas
• Sweet Stampin' - Christmas
• Winter Wonderland - Anything Christmas

PBSC December - Anything Goes (Optional 'Sparkle & Shine')

It's the first Saturday of the month, so that means it's time for a new Penny Black Saturday Challenge...where the theme is:

'Anything Goes'
or
'Sparkle & Shine'

As usual, we are sponsored by the awesome 1-2-3 Stitch:

Prize - a $20 voucher!

I inked up one of my older wood mounted Penny Blacks...'Cat on the Moon', and coloured it using watercolour pencils...adding some sparkle to the stars & moon using a Wink of Stella pen. I made a super sparkly background by repeat stamping a panel of stars (from the 'Starry Backdrops' set by Lawn Fawn) in Versamark Ink on navy card, then heat embossing it using 'Metallic Gold Sparkle' embossing glitter from WOW. I matted everything on to gold glitter card for even more sparkle. 

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• 2 Crafty Critter Crazies - Anything Goes
• Crafty Catz - Anything Goes
• Cute Card Thursday - Anything Goes
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Mondays) - Let's Sparkle
• Stamping Sensations - Anything Goes

For more inspirtion from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the Penny Black Saturday Challenge.

Carolers

I have another Christmas card to share today...featuring one of the first Penny Black stamps I bought...called 'Carolers'. I coloured it using watercolour pencils, then added a sentiment from a set by Stamping Bella called 'Caroling Chicks'. I made a simple background by embossing a piece of kraft card using my 'Musical Notes' embossing folder by Crafts Too...matting everything on to snippets of red card.

Challenges for this card:

• Addicted to Stamps - Anything Goes
• Animal Friends - Birds
• Cardz for Guyz - Christmas Critters
• Crafty Sentiments - Anything Goes
• Everybody Art - Anything Goes
• Penny's Paper Crafty - Anything Goes
• Stamping Sensations - Anything Goes
• Through the Craft Room Door - Anything Goes

ABC Christmas Challenge - Y & Z are for?

We have reached the final ABC Christmas Challenge of the year...Samantha is the host, and the themes for this month are:

'Y is for Yuletide'

&

'Z is for Zig Zags'

There's a little prize from Samantha on offer for the winner of this challenge:

I couldn't find a specific 'Yule' sentiment among my stash of stamps, so used a combination of stamps frm the Happy Little Stampers 'Everyday Messages' set ('Have a') and Paper Smooches 'Graffiti Alphabet' stamps to make my own. I stamped it directly on to my DL card blank, then added an image from the Lili of the Valley 'Penguins' set below. I coloured the penguins using watercolour pencils.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Allsorts - Christmas Gifts
• Christmas with the Cuties - Santa Hats
• Creative Knockouts - Winter Holidays
• Merry Little Christmas - Anything Christmas Goes
• Shopping Our Stash - Happy Holidays

On my 'Zig Zags' card, I used an old faithful...'Snowy' by Penny Black'...stamping him directly on to my card blank and coloured him using watercolour pencils, then I used snippets of 'zig zag' patterned paper, from the My Mind's Eye 'Chevrons' paper pad, to paper piece his hat and scarf. The sentiment stamp is from the  Sweet Dixie 'Merry Little Robin' stamp set.

I'm also entering this card into the following challenges:

• Always Fun - Snowmen
• Dream Valley - Christmas
• Moo Mania - Use Your Scraps
• Polkadoodles - Anything Goes
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• Use Your Stuff - Snow

For more inspiration from my lovely DT buddies, please pop over to the ABC Christmas Challenge.

'O' Christmas Tree

I have a couple of simple watercolour cards to share today...made using an idea shared here by Kristina Werner. I used masking tape to make a 'tree' shape on watercolour paper, then painted stipes of green watercolours, drying in between each different colour, overlapping the colours until I had covered the whole of each tree. Once dry, I removed the tape, then added sentiments (from the 'Scribbly Christmas' set by Tim Holtz for Satmpers Anonymous), and doodled frames before adding my watercoloured panels on to kraft card blanks.

Challenges for these cards:

• A Bit More Time to Craft - Anything Goes
• A Perfect Time to Craft - Anything Goes
• Christmas Card Throwdown - Watercolour
• Crafty Catz - Anything Goes (Optional 'CAS')
• Happy Little Stampers (Watercolour) - Anything Goes (Optional 'Christmas)
• Simon Says Stamp (Wednesdays) - Anything Goes
• The Sisterhood of Crafters - Trees